Donaire trainer lauds 'warrior' Arce

ABS-CBN News

MANILA, Philippines – Robert Garcia, the trainer of Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire, is full of praise for Mexican warrior Jorge Arce after the two boxers clashed in a world super bantamweight bout last Saturday in Houston.

Arce twice got up from knockdowns before finally getting stopped with just one second left in the third round.

“Him going out like that, I give him so much credit,” Garcia said in a Boxing Scene interview.

Arce was a massive underdog going into the bout and fought cautiously in the opening round, although he began to open up more after tasting the canvas in the second round.

He had no answer for Donaire, however, who landed his punches with regularity, including the final left hook that stopped the Mexican.

“He’s been a tremendous warrior in boxing, and he’s given us great fights,” Garcia said of Arce, who is known for his aggressive, crowd-pleasing style of fighting.

“I feel nothing but honor to know that (the fight) was against somebody like Arce,” he added.

Arce and Donaire are good friends outside the ring. The Mexican was classy in defeat, saying he lost to the “best man” and then announced his retirement.

Arce leaves boxing with a record of 61 wins against seven losses and two draws.